By Amanda Wood, PRO Medical Registered Dietitian
Finally, an introvert’s dream! Or a dieter’s worst nightmare! A historical moment is upon us. Most of us are safely tucking ourselves away at home, attempting to preserve our health against the rising tide of Covid-19. For many, life must go on. Deadlines still glare red on calendars, children need to learn, food must be prepared, and health must, more than ever, be paramount. For someone embarking on a newly minted healthy lifestyle, being “stuck” at home, comes with its fair share of vices. For instance, when the heck did the pantry learn to whisper… snacksss… SnAAAcks… SNACKS!!!
The biggest key to helping you stay in control of your health while hunkering down at home is to set. a. schedule.
And stick to it. I can not articulate this enough. Our bodies thrive off schedules and routines. Your metabolism is like a symphony. It operates harminously when all the sections work in concert together, performing to the same rhythym. Sure, one instrument blaring a wrong note is not so nocticeable (like endulging in a glass of wine one night). But, watch out if an entire section gets blown off key. For instance, what happens when that nightly one glass ebbs into a nightly whole bottle! Think about how that impacts your entire system… your sleep is impacted.. then you’re tired and foggy the next day.. bring on that extra quad shot vanilla latte… maybe a little sugar too to keep yourself alert, sure add the croissant to that Starbucks drive through breakfast order… uh oh, now its 2 pm in the afternoon – the “witching hour” – aka the dreaded blood sugar crash.. wait, is that your pantry whispering… snacks! All the snacks!! See what I mean?
The critical pieces for setting a daily schedule are: bedtime and rise time (these are your metabolic keystones), meal and snack times (metabolic boosters), time for moving your body (even if its just 15 mins of stretching), and time for social connection and/or relaxation. These critical keystones will help keep your body and your mind in harmony. Set calendar or watch reminders if you need. If you fall out of your routine, maybe you worked through lunch or stayed up super late finishing that slide deck, don’t panic. Just get back on schedule as fast as you can. Monitor for those whispers, they will reach out to you the next day, just do your best to keep yourself plugged in and in control of your routine.
If you’re struggling, reach out for support – a loved one, a friend, a co-worker, or a health care provider. Yes, PRO Club is temporarily closed, but our phenomenal mental health team and dietitians are available via phone and telehealth. We are only one phone call or email away and we are here to offer you support and guidance through this trying time. Stay safe everyone, but most importantly stay healthy!
